by Matthew S. Bajko

Sometime after 9 p.m. this Friday (March 24) the
five-year-old "healthy penis" will hop into a van – perhaps
even a limousine – and wave goodbye to San Francisco, his birthplace and
home since the summer of 2002. With the city's syphilis rate among gay men
plummeting by 23 percent last year, the nameless healthy penis is needed
elsewhere.

Santa Clara County health officials have invited the healthy
penis to San Jose for the next six months to alert gay men about the need to
get tested and treated for syphilis, a sexually transmitted disease known to
increase one's chances of contracting HIV.

"It's kind of sad it is coming to an end," said
the healthy penis' father, Scott Metzger, a straight man who created the
comical phallus character. "I am prepared for it, though it is going to be
a bummer."

Metzger, who insisted his progeny is not modeled after
anyone, not only drew the cartoon advertisements featuring the healthy penis
and his nemesis, Phil the red-faced syphilis sore, but wrote the dialogue in
the strips. Les Pappas, owner of Better World Advertising who came up with the
concept for the social marketing campaign, hired Metzger to bring his idea to
life.

"Les wanted it to be like the Ritchie Cunningham of
penises. He was not to be that square but a happy-go-lucky character,"
said Metzger. "He is just a silly little character I wanted to be goofy
and likeable."

Back in 1998 San Francisco led what would become a national
trend in troubling spikes in the rate of syphilis among gay men. Health
officials worried the doubling in cases of the STD from year to year was an
ominous harbinger for increases in HIV cases. San Francisco's director of STD
control, Dr. Jeffrey Klausner, turned to Pappas and his firm to develop a
campaign around testing for syphilis.

Los Angeles health officials also hired the agency to
develop its own syphilis elimination campaign – both cities had received
federal funding to reduce the spread of the STD – and Pappas's firm
developed similar approaches for both health departments. The healthy penis
took the starring role in San Francisco while Phil played center stage in L.A.

"San Francisco was like 'okay' after a little
apprehension and said 'Let's do it.' Los Angeles said 'No. We cannot have a
campaign about penises.' So we adapted it," recalled Pappas.

L.A.'s "Stop the Sores" version has since been
used in Philadelphia, Portland, and the state of Alabama. The healthy penis
traveled to Seattle. Along with the cartoon advertisements, the campaigns have
included life-size costumed penis and sore characters and hand-sized penis and
sore stress grips. In San Francisco the campaign included an award-winning
television ad voiced by local men.

Some critics called the campaign immature when it debuted,
but studies have shown the healthy penis ads led more gay men to get tested for
the STD.

"People came to love the penis. It grew on them,"
said Pappas.

In 2005, the city reported 509 syphilis cases compared to
680 cases in 2004. The number of cases in January this year dropped to 26
compared to 45 cases in January 2005. Seventy percent of HIV-positive men
report having a recent syphilis test and half of HIV negative men report
getting tested.

"We would not have had this success in increased
testing or flattening in syphilis cases if gay men hadn't responded to"
the campaign said Klausner, whose department spent at least $300,000 on it.

Before the healthy penis leaves for his new home, the
community will fete him at Harvey's from 6 to 9 p.m. with a party, farewell
speeches, and drinks and food (hot dogs are said to be on the menu).

"I am having one more night with the healthy penis. I
don't want Phil though," said Supervisor Bevan Dufty.

Glad to share him with his gay brethren in San Jose, Dufty
surmised Friday night might not be the last time he sees the healthy penis.

"It is going to be like Cher where he will have one
tour after another. If you can turn back time, you can bring back the healthy
penis," joked Dufty.